What a tutor website needs: pages, words and photos

A tutor's website needs to tell a parent, or an adult learner, three things quickly: what you teach and to whom, why you are qualified, and how to get started. Pages for your subjects, a real page about you, how sessions work, your rates and policies, and a short contact form cover almost everything. Most tutors do not need more than five or six pages.

Who is reading, and when

Most tutoring sites are read by parents, often in the evening, often right after a report card, a bad test or a meeting with a teacher. Some readers are adult learners: someone preparing for a nursing entrance exam, the GED, or a citizenship test. They have similar questions:

• Do you teach this subject at this level?
• Who are you, and what is your background?
• Is it online, at my home, at a library, or at your office?
• How often, how long, and how much?
• What happens at the first session?
• How do I start?

The first screen of your home page should answer the first and last of these: "Math and chemistry tutoring for middle and high school students in Plano, in person or online. Book a free 20-minute call."

The pages a tutor site needs

Home

One sentence that says your subjects, the grades or levels, the area or online, and how to start. Then a photo of you, a short welcome, and two or three lines from real parents or students, used with permission. A tappable phone number and a "Get started" button at the top.

Subjects

List what you teach, grouped the way parents think: by subject and grade band. If you tutor test prep, list the tests. Keep each subject short: what you cover, which grades, and any curriculum or textbook you know well. The companion guide on subjects, levels and first sessions goes into how to lay this out and what to say about assessments and scheduling.

About you

For a solo tutor, this page often decides the booking. Include:

• Your education, with your degree subject named.
• Teaching experience: classroom years, grade levels, subjects.
• Any teaching certification or license, and the state that issued it.
• Why you tutor and how you work with students. A paragraph in your own words.
• A real photo, friendly and well-lit.

If you run a small tutoring business with several tutors, give each one a short profile with their subjects and background, and say how you match students with tutors.

How sessions work

Where sessions take place, how long they last, how often you suggest meeting, what students should bring, and how you keep parents informed. If you tutor online, name the tools you use and what the student needs at home: a laptop or tablet, a quiet place, headphones.

Rates and policies

Rates per session or per package, any discount for paying ahead, and your policies on cancellations, missed sessions, rescheduling and payment. Parents prefer to see the price before they call. If your rates vary by subject or level, say how. Whether to list prices on your website covers the trade-offs if you are unsure.

Contact

A short form and your phone number, covered below.

Words that reassure parents

Parents worry about two things besides results: will my child like this person, and is my child safe. Address both briefly.

• Describe your manner with students: patient, structured, encouraging, whatever is true for you.
• Say where in-home sessions take place and that a parent or guardian is expected to be at home, if that is your policy.
• If you have had a background check, for example through a school district or a tutoring agency, say so.
• Say how you report progress: a short note after each session, a monthly check-in, or a call.

Avoid claims you cannot back up, like "guaranteed grade improvement" or "raises scores by X points". Students' progress depends on many things, including their own effort. Say what you will do instead: "We find the gaps, work on them in order, and you will hear from me after every session."

Photos that work for a tutor

• A clear photo of you, smiling, in normal clothes.
• Your workspace or tutoring room, if you have one.
• Hands working through a problem on paper or a whiteboard.

Avoid stock photos of students in graduation gowns or sitting in front of laptops. Photos of real students need written permission from parents and, for minors, are usually best avoided altogether.

What to leave off

• A long list of every subject you could possibly teach. Focus on what you do well and often.
• Teaching philosophy statements longer than a paragraph.
• Old schedules and summer programs from past years.
• A blog you do not update. A single "Tips for parents" page with a few useful answers is easier to keep current.
• Personal contact details you do not want parents to use at 11 at night.

A contact path that fits school schedules

Parents usually reach out in the evening or on a weekend, and you may be in sessions after school. Plan for that:

• A short request form asking for the student's grade, subject, the main concern, any upcoming test date, in-person or online preference, and good days and times.
• Say when you reply: "I answer every request within one day, usually in the morning."
• Offer a short call first. Many tutors start with a free 15- or 20-minute phone call to talk about the student. It helps parents decide and helps you prepare.
• Make your phone number tappable, and say whether you prefer calls or texts.

If you use an online scheduling tool for sessions, link it for current students and say new families should start with the form or the call. Test the form by sending yourself a request; contact forms that people actually fill in shows how to keep it short enough that parents finish it.

What to do this week

• Write one sentence with your subjects, levels, area and how to start, and put it on the first screen.
• Update your about page with your degree, teaching experience and a recent photo.
• Write a short "How sessions work" section.
• Post your rates and cancellation policy.
• Set up or check your request form and test it.

If you already have a tutoring site and it is out of date or hard to read on a phone, you can see it rebuilt first and decide with the result in front of you.